Page 30 of Dark Awakening: Hidden Currents

A soft babble from the baby monitor interrupted their moment. Allegra was awake from her morning nap, right on schedule.

"I'll get her," Kian offered, pressing a quick kiss to Syssi's forehead before heading to the nursery.

Syssi followed, leaning against the doorframe as she watched Kian lift their daughter from her crib. At eleven months old, Allegra was a bundle of energy and curiosity. Her chubby hands reached for Kian's face, patting his cheeks as she leaned in and kissed the tip of his nose.

"Dada."

"Hello, sweetness," Kian cooed, bouncing her gently. "Are you ready for a little trip?"

"Nana?" Allegra's eyes lit up with excitement at the prospect of going out.

"Yes, sweetheart. We are going with Nana, Auntie Amanda, and Auntie Alena, Evie, and E.T. and their daddies. Uncle Toven and Aunt Mia are coming as well."

Syssi stepped forward, running a hand over Allegra's soft curls. "Let's get you dressed, sweetie. We're going to meet a new family member today. Uncle Ell-rom."

Allegra tried to repeat the name and got frustrated when nothing she said sounded even remotely close.

"Try saying Rom," Kian suggested.

"Om."

"Good enough." Kian handed her to Syssi.

Allegra seemed satisfied with the compromise and didn't even fuss about the dress Syssi chose for her.

”Wow, that must be a first," Syssi murmured under her breath. "Let's see if we get as lucky with the shoes."

Kian walked over to Allegra's closet and pulled out a pair of black patent leather Mary Janes with rhinestones on the buckles. "She never says no to these."

"Of course she doesn't." Syssi took the shoes from him and put them on their daughter's socked feet. "The shinier, the better."

23

ELL-ROM

The two Odus toiling in the kitchen and dining area fascinated Ell-rom. They had arrived unescorted, with bags full of groceries, and had gotten straight to preparing the meal for the upcoming family gathering. They worked efficiently and silently, never bumping into each other or getting in each other's way but still dividing the tasks between them in a coordinated dance.

Despite not exchanging a single word between them, Ell-rom had the distinct impression they were communicating on some subliminal level.

They didn't wear earpieces, and he wondered if they had been programmed to understand the Kra-ell language. Curiosity getting the better of him, he decided to conduct a little experiment and approached one of the Odus, who was arranging a dish on the counter.

"Excuse me," Ell-rom said, "Could you tell me what is in this dish?"

The Odu turned to him, bowing deeply before launching into an explanation. Obviously, he had understood the question that had been presented in Kra-ell, but Ell-rom couldn't be sure what language the Odu was responding in. The translation earpieces he wore were doing their job so flawlessly that the Odu could be speaking English, and he heard Kra-ell.

The interaction reinforced Ell-rom's growing awareness of how dependent he'd become on the translation technology. He wore the earpieces constantly, even to bed, because he didn't want to wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to understand Jasmine. She did the same, wearing her earpieces at all times. They were so comfortable that it was easy to forget that they were even there, but they were a crutch, not a solution.

"There you are," Jasmine said from behind him.

As he turned to look at her, his breath caught in his throat. She looked stunning in a dress that hugged her curves perfectly. She'd done something to her hair so that it cascaded down her shoulders in big, bouncy waves, and her lips were painted blood red.

He wondered if she had done that on purpose as part of his exposure therapy.

If that had been her intention, it was brilliant because there was nothing unappealing about those red-painted lips, and all he could think about was kissing them.

Jasmine laughed and did a little twirl in place. "You like?"

"You look absolutely stunning."